Gabrielle Truax - Street Photography

by Donato Buccella

I chose this photograph because it captures a fantastical image and disturbs the viewer at the same time. It's quirky and gets our attention, but unsettles us too. In the realm of formal elements, the photo uses the rule of thirds; selective focus on the poster's lips draws our attention to that and contrasts the blurriness of the man; the photographer obviously caught the decisive moment; the texture as well as the contrasty light and shadows playing on the building on the left draws out the texture and contrasty light of the poster; the subway grate also adds texture and contrast. I think this image captures very well the contrast in our society between commercial, hollywood, and celebrity glam and what real life  actually looks like; the poster with perfect skin is the opposite of this balding, middle-aged man in a hurry. It also looks like the giant poster woman might eat this mans head; it can represent how we are being engulfed in an increasingly artificial, cosmetic, and hyper-sexualized culture.


by Helen Levitt

I chose this photograph because I loved the interaction between the mother and the daughter. The "crookedness" of the picture gives it a really candid, informal, and truthful persona. The blurriness of the mother and the child, even though it might have been unintentional, adds to the photo because the blurriness can represent how these people were marginalized at the time and even today. However, you can still see they're expressions if you look. You can see the mother's joy and care for her child in her smile and out-stretched arm, and you can see the little girl's look of worry as she runs to her mother. We don't have an explanation for what is going on in this picture, but we feel a sense of concern, because the little girl is in the dirty street with no shoes, and there is the threat of the car to her safety, and it looks like there is water spraying in the background which might be cause for further concern. This photograph puts us in the shoes of this mamma and baby; we're on their side of the street; we see their faces; we feel their emotions. The car in the background however could represent the people who would have owned a car at that time--middle or upper class white people--and if we're from that group, we are caused to question ourselves. We see the car's threat to the baby; we see the juxtaposition between rich and poor; we see the humanity of the people who are marginalized.


by Lukas Vasilikos

I chose this photo because of its sharpness in lighting and detail. The lighting creates the whole effect of this photo; it causes it to be dramatic and seem deep in meaning. The light coming around the corner creates a line which falls on the woman sitting, illuminating her expression sharply. It engenders the sense of an emotional or spiritual door being cracked which allows us to see a glimpse of someone's true nature. It also could be seen, for Christians, as Light coming into the darkness. The leading line of the light also connects the woman illuminated and the woman silhouetted. It can suggest the connection between humans. I think of it as the woman silhouetted appears to be the exact opposite of the woman sitting in the light, however, they are connected and are the same, in a way. This street photographer also got the decisive moment by catching the silhouetted woman just as she was at the edge of the building and in mid-stride. It appears as though she might merge into the darkness, which also creates drama in the photo. Overall, I think this photo is really powerful because of the way it was taken, with the lighting and the lines, and can hold a lot of different meanings for the different people who view it.

While waiting for her bus, Sarah chatted with myself and Allison for a few minutes while we took her picture; she goes to Community College. 

Metadata: f/3.2

1/200 sec.

ISO - 400

Exposure and contrast adjusted.

A group of photographers downtown, who told us they were in an intro to photography class, hung out chatting, and one (center) made faces for the camera.

Metadata: f/3.2

1/200 sec.

ISO - 400

Jonathon, a student at Grand Valley State University, was out photographing the Grand River when Allison and I requested his photo; he is a marketing major and does photography as a hobby.

Metadata: f/3.2

1/60 sec.

ISO - 400

Exposure adjusted.

We asked these three picturesque bicyclers if we could photograph them; they posed for us still, then in motion; according to her friends, the girl in the red pants likes her picture taken.

Metadata: f/2.8

1/125 sec.

ISO - 400

Brenda, walking near the JW Marriott downtown, offered to resume walking for me when I asked if I could take her picture; I had to hurry to keep up!

Metadata: f/2.8

1/50 sec.

ISO - 400

Exposure adjusted.

Keely, a dancer trained at the Grand Rapids Ballet, is a character in a music video production for which the film crew was beginning the first stages on the Blue Bridge, downtown Grand Rapids.

Metadata: f/2.8

1/30 sec.

ISO - 800